Sunday, 6 August 2017

What I Learned from Lilly Singh's "How To Be A Bawse"

Lilly Singh is a digital media star with over 12 million Youtube
followers on her iiSuperwomanii
channel. She is also an entrepreneur, actor, world-touring entertainer,
People’s Choice Award winner, Forbes, Time, and Inc. leader list member, brand
ambassador, and two-time author.

Why did I read this self-help book written by someone whose
audience in 2014 was 80 percent 14 to 25-year-old women? Research. I was
looking for a fresh voice and perspective on the personal development space
before starting my second book.

I noticed How To Be A
Bawse on a table of books at Costco. It was hard to miss. The front and
back cover are powerful, the table of contents intriguing and layout eye-catching.
This is the inspiration I was looking for – homework can be exciting.

How To Be a Bawse
is a collection of lessons Lilly has learned as she became “a Bawse” or, as defined on the back cover, “a person who exudes confidence, hustles
relentlessly, reaches goals, gets hurt efficiently, and smiles generally
because he or she fought through it all and made it out the other side.” Or as
she told Jimmy Fallon, “Someone who conquers their whole life, not just at
work, at home, in relationships, how they communicate; they just don’t survive
life, they conquer it.”

Here is what I learned from How To Be A Bawse about creating an engaging and helpful guide:

Content

Bite-sized
learning is best – the book contains 50 short (2-5 pages), “easy to digest”
chapters, one lesson per chapter.

Put your
fingerprints on knowledge – multiple tips have been noted in previous
self-help books, and yet are given fresh perspectives and applications, e.g. “I’ll
visualize exactly what I want to happen” (The
Magic of Believing, Claude Bristol); “Don’t be afraid to ask for things”
(Self Esteem and Peak Performance, Jack
Canfield).

Role model
learning – share what you do. Lilly continually shares how she has been
successful by following the lessons, which bestows authenticity.

Begin
with a story – stories are engaging teachers. They provide context and
relevance to the advice. They also provide personal credibility if they are
about the author.

Use metaphors
and analogies – they make insights relevant and real. “When you are
climbing the ladder, the heaviest piece of clothing you wear is your pride.” Got
it.

Help
people take action – Lilly includes short action plans at the end of some chapters
that help people apply her lessons, transitioning readers from intent to adoption
(e.g. "Make an Investment. Outline one investment in each currency that will
help you reach your goals: Time, Energy, and Money”).

Be
quotable – Most chapters are summarized in easy to remember soundbites
(e.g. “At the end of the day, you can’t learn new things if you’re always the
one who is giving the lessons”; “Being a Bawse isn’t always about being the
best; it’s about placing yourself in the best situations.”

Format

Use sub-headings – titles help people scan for
importance or speed, used often on the internet.

Pictures
make the point – photos and illustrations are easier to absorb and are more
stimulating than text because visuals add life to the content – use them
freely.

Use pull
quotes – blowing up key points creates emphasis – you can’t miss them, especially
if they take up a full page. They answer the question, “What is the most
important thing you need to remember?”

Style

Be
different – writing a “me-too” book diminishes meaning and threatens
purpose. As Lilly says, “I wanted to make sure that whatever I offered was not
only up to par but different from what was already out there.”

Motivate the
reader – Lilly checks in with the reader
to motivate them to keep reading. Speak directly to the reader as they
experience the content, as if you are along for the ride. A good example is in the
Introduction: “Don’t feel bad if you forget things! I encourage you to read
chapters over and over again because becoming a Bawse is a process that doesn’t
happen overnight.”

Be
directive – you are the expert so say what you believe is true. Lilly is in
charge, evident by her “Rules for Reading this Book,” recommendations (e.g. “If
you skipped to this chapter…now put the darts away and start from the beginning
of the book”) and “Congratulations” in the conclusion.

Make it
personal – a path to trust is showing vulnerability. Lilly shares her life’s
doubts and low points through stories and journal entries, which brings the reader
closer to her and the lessons she’s learned.

Humour makes
things interesting – people fully engage in the moment when they are
amused. As Lilly says, “I’ve worked really hard on writing this with the intent
of making you laugh and inspired.” She is funny with a purpose; her humour
supports her point, and she does so “with a healthy hint of sass.”

Make
titles interesting – Books compete with all other forms of media so make
your topics engaging (e.g. “You Are Not a Parking Ticket” – unwarranted
validation leads to entitlement, and “TheAlphabet is a Lie” – focus on Plan A; don’t have a Plan B).

I learned a lot from reading How To Be A Bawse, both from the lessons themselves and how they have
been presented. Lilly does have a fresh perspective on creating a self-help
guide through her content, formatting and style. Interestingly, her approaches
would work just as well for other types of communication like public speaking and
coaching.

What I learned most was the author’s ability to succinctly convey
insights. Three of my favourites are:

“It’s clear that the majority of failed
relationships are caused by one thing: having different priorities”;

“As with all expectations, you risk
disappointment”; and

“Successful people understand the importance of
positivity.”

Lilly’s lessons will guide far more than the creation of my next
book.

So, do you want to be a Bawse? I know an excellent self-help
guide that will help you become one. But as Lilly Singh says, “Everything takes
effort.”